That Fatal First Kiss
by HSMsweetie33
Summary: Bradin and Ericka fall madly in love after a fatal first kiss, but they attend rival schools... Will they ever work things out, or will everthing blow up? Summerland paring addition characters. Better summay inside ; please read!
1. Trailer summary

Bradin was your typical star Quarter Back

Ericka was your average, and perfect Head Cheerleader

After their _fatal first kiss_—They fell in love

So they're the picture perfect couple right?

WRONG

They would be… but there's one major problem in their not so perfect relationship

He's a senior at Southern High

She's a senior at Northern High

The schools hold the BIGGEST rivalry in high school history!

The Schools were about to kill each other.

So, how will everyone react when they figure out that one's primo boy is dating the other's primo girl??

Find out in **That Fatal First Kiss**


	2. The First kiss

It was August 16th, 2008 in New York City. It was also exactly one week before school started again for Southern and Northern High. Southern and Northern were rivals. Not just your typical rivals either; they would do just about ANYTHING to beat one another… Northern had even gone as far as to purposely break a quarterback's leg at a game last year so they could win! Needless to say this year would NOT be better.

Bradin attended Southern as a senior. He was like the most popular, most charming, and not to mention most good looking guy in the school. He was tall, had an amazing tan complexion year round, he was blonde, and had the most breath taking green eyes anyone would ever see. He was like a god. And most of the students in his school treated him like one. But he never it that get to him, he was one of the most down to earth people on earth. He was also captain/ quarterback of the school's football team (yeah he was the one to get his leg broken last year, but he had fully recovered).

Ericka attended Northern as a senior. She much like Bradin was probably considered the primo girl of the school. She was pretty, popular, and smart. She was around 5'5" with long chocolate brown hair that reached halfway down her back. She was half Latina so her complexion was kinda dark, but she had amazing cobalt blue eyes. Every guy at northern wanted her, and all the girls were either friends with her, or wouldn't speak to her out of jealousy. But even with all the attention Ericka was about the nicest person anyone could meet. She was head cheerleader for the school's Varsity squad as well.

They both knew everyone at their own schools, but they had never even heard of each other. Not until that fatal night.

The week before school started for the schools, they had an annual back to school dance that both schools went to. Neither school really liked the idea of them both being in the same room, but they were civil. Each school just kept to themselves. Bradin auditorium of Northern high school (it was their year to host the dance), and right away he caught up with one of his buds, Derek.

Bradin greeted Derek with a man hug (a/n haha I always laugh when guys do that)

"Yo man, what's up?"

"Nothing much, ya know same old, same old… How about you?" Derek replied.

"Same here. As weird as this sounds… I'm totally excited for school to start this year!"

"Umm yeah, that is weird. Why though?"

"Haha, I don't actually know. I guess because it's senior year, we have the team in kick ass shape for season starting, and I just have a good feeling about this year."

"The team part is true! We are going to DOMINATE this year!"

"You got that right! It's gonna rock!"

"Yeah… so man I haven't heard from you at all this summer, so how's Sarah?"

Sarah was Bradin's girlfriend of a year and a half. "Dude I don't know, and I don't care"

"Ouch man! You say that awfully coldly… What happened?"

"I honestly haven't the slightest clue. One day we're in the movie theater all happy, the next she's making out with some other dude. I don't get it."

"Wow that sucks. I'm sorry about that."

"Hey it's cool. It happened right after school ended, so I'm over it. She was always bitching at me anyways, so good riddance."

The guys broke into a fit of laughter knowing how true Bradin's statement was. When Derek finally caught his breath he spoke again, "So, you got your eye on any cuties now-a-days?"

Bradin didn't answer for a second but when he did he spoke in almost a whisper as he said, "Uh yeah."

"Well… who is she?"

"I don't know, but she's right there" he pointed to a girl across the room. He was totally mesmerized by her beauty.

Sure enough though it was none other than Ericka Marley aka the most beautiful girl from Northern high school. She had just walked through the doors into the auditorium, wearing a light blue sundress with white heels, the outfit really brought out her blue eyes. Bradin was so stunned he didn't even move but just watched her walk across the room until she finally disappeared into a crowd of people. When He looked over to his friend Derek he found him also staring at the beautiful girl.

"Oh… my… GOD! Who is she? … Derek?" he looked over to Derek who was still staring in the direction of where they last saw her. "DEREK!"

"Oh! Sorry. I don't know. I've never seen her before. What do you think her name is?"

"I have NO idea… but I'm about to find out." And with that he started walking toward where he last saw her. He knew Derek would probably be mad at him for leaving so fast, but he didn't care. He wasn't sure why he just didn't. For some reason the only thing he DID care about was seeing her.

When he located the beautiful lady he'd looked for so long, she was standing alone by the punch bowl, he figued it was perfect timing for them to meet each other.

"Hey, I'm Bradin." He said confidently when he reached her

She looked up figuring it was just another desperate guy who'd pay big bucks just to dance with her. She was about to tell whoever this Bradin was to buzz off when she got caught in his eyes. They were the most amazing shade of bright green she'd ever seen. She soon found that the rest of him was just as gorgeous as his perfect eyes. She found herself smiling, not only that but answering too!

"Hi Bradin, I'm Ericka."

"Ericka? That's a pretty name… It suits you"

_Did he just imply that I'm pretty? Oh my god I think he did!! But why is it cute when he does it, but not with other guys? Oh well he still thinks I'm pretty!_ She thought to herself. Then she suddenly realized he was waiting for a reply. "Oh why thank you… I think?"

"Haha, you're quite welcome." Just then Collide by Howie Day started to play… This was his chance to make his first move. He extended his hand, "May I have this dance?"

She giggled at his gentleman like actions, and took his hand, "Why of course you may."

He led her to the middle of the dance floor, and placed his hands on her hips. She followed suit and wrapped her arms around his neck as they started to sway to the music.

_Hmm, this is nice. I hope nothing ruins this moment. Oh my gosh what if she's dating someone! She wouldn't dance with me if she wasn't single right? Oh gosh. How should I casually ask her?_ He thought about it a bit more then finally figured out how to make it work.

"So, will your boyfriend be upset that you're dancing with me?"

She looked surprised. "Um no, considering I don't have one… I think it'll be ok" she giggled

"Oh… I just thought someone as nice, and pretty as you couldn't possibly be single." Now he was embarrassed. He even blushed a bit, turning light pink

"Well I am." She smiled noticing that he had blushed.

After that they just danced in a comfortable silence. When the Song finished Bradin seized the opportunity to hug Ericka, which she was happy to return the gesture. But when they stopped hugging Ericka stepped backwards right into a puddle of spilled water. Her heels were already slick, so the puddle made her slide even more, making her start falling toward the floor. Luckily Bradin caught her right before she hit the floor. After he caught her, he was stuck there just looking into her beautiful eyes, as was she with his. Without thinking both of them started to lean in simultaneously.

Their lips met in a perfect kiss. It was soft and sweet but it left them both feeling as if the whole world was spinning around then while they were the only two things in focus. And with that they both knew that this was hgoing to turn into something wonderful.

They pulled back, and Bradin stood Ericka upright again. Neither one said a word; they just stood there with smiles playing on their lips where the kiss was still lingering as well.

**So… how was it?? Shall I continue? Was it too fluffy? Let me know what I need to improve, and what was good! Review please! I want at least one before I post another Chapter**


	3. After Shock

Everyone around just stared in total shock. Each and every one of them was thinking the very same thing; Did Southern High's famous quarterback just kiss Northern High's primo head cheerleader? The answer, they all knew, was yes. A better question they should have asked was; why?

Bradin just looked at Ericka, unable to speak or move. He really liked her, but he had just met her so why did he feel this way?

Ericka stared straight into Bradin's beautiful eyes, and didn't dare move a single muscle until he recovered. Bradin finally came to his senses, and just as he started to speak he felt himself being pulled out of the crowd by none other than, Derek. Once they were in the lobby, alone, Bradin finally got a chance to talk.

"Dude, what the hell are you doing? I was just about to ask her out!"

"I'm sorry Brad, but you can NOT do that!"

"Why not? She's hot, we kissed, and I think that I have every right to ask her out!"

"But you can't!"

"And why not?"

"Because man, she's from Northern. Not only that, but she's Northern High's head cheerleader!"

Bradin could only bring out one single word after he found this out…

"Shit."

No more than two seconds after Bradin was pulled out of Ericka's sight, she two was grabbed by one of her girlfriends Cricket.

"Where is he going?" Ericka asked worriedly.

"Ericka, who cares where that jerk is going, what I wanna know is why were you kissing him?"

"Because he's sooo cute! Did you see him?"

"Yeah I have. And if you think really hard I'm sure you'll remember seeing him before tonight too."

"What are you talking about? You are making no sense!"

"Do the words 'Southern High quarterback' ring any bells?"

"Oh my god! That's Bradin, is Bradin Westerly, Bradin?"

"YES!"

Ericka too only had one word come to mind.

"Shit."

Her friend looked at her with sympathy in her eyes knowing that she hadn't even looked at a guy with any hope since Wesley , her first and only boyfriend, moved away reluctantly leaving her here, alone, and miserable. And now she had finally admitted to kind of liking and had even kissed another guy, and she couldn't even pursue it because of where he was from.

"Yeah... Honey I'm so sorry. I know it's gotta be hard but its ok. There are plenty of other guys here from Northern that are equally hot that wanna dance with you. So go have fun."

"Cricket, why are you being so sympathetic? I kissed him… that's it. It's not like we're engaged. I mean what's one harmless kiss between two people? It's as simple as that, besides there weren't any sparks."

With that she walked away, leaving her friend there knowing it wasn't as simple as that. Ericka never kissed guys unless she knew there would be sparks… and anyone who had eyes could tell there were sparks between those perfect strangers in that kiss, as weird as that was. Cricket knew that her friend was hurting but she was hiding well, she just couldn't lay her finger on why Ericka liked this Bradin so much.

Ericka couldn't understand her own feelings either for that matter. She hadn't felt this way about anyone since Wes. She had been so numb with hurt after he moved to Texas that she hadn't opened up to any guy. Now here she was finally fearless for the first time in a long time and it was with the wrong person. How could she have not thought of who he was? And why did she not care that he was the person everyone else in her entire student body despised most? All she cared about was seeing him again.

But that, she knew, was impossible. She did feel something in that kiss, but she had to pretend it was nothing and move on. She couldn't dwell on something that would never happen. She walked to her car, allowing herself to let her tears fall freely but silently, but she vowed to herself that tomorrow morning she would wake up as she always did and go back to being same old Ericka who never talked to guys, who never opened her heart. If she couldn't fall in love with a guy who would stay, or even kiss a guy who was from an approprite school, she wasn't even going to try anymore.

As she reached her car she saw an obscure figure behind the dumpster she was parked next to. Panicky she dug for her keys in her purse, but she had no luck finding them. Then she remembered locking them in her car so she could just use the number code. But in all the panic she forgot what it was, just her luck.

45778? Nope… 45887? Not it either… 45578? YES!! But by the time she figured it out and pulled the door open she felt a hand on her shoulder, there she was in the middle of the parking lot with no witnesses in sight accept for one person who held the potential to harm her and that was it… she was screwed! As she was about to turn and see who was there a voice spoke…

"Ericka?"

It was a guy's voice and he knew her… this was either very good, or very bad. She drew a deep breath and quickly turned around, surprised to find…

"Bradin? Oh my God what are you doing here?"

"I came out to find you… I saw you leaving and you looked upset, I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Well that's very nice of you but you scared the shit out of me!"

"Oh I'm sorry… I probably shouldn't have snuck up on you. But anyway are you okay? It looks like you've been crying…"

"Oh it's nothing. I'm fine really." He didn't believe her but decided not to dwell on it. He didn't figure arguing with her would exactly be the way to win her over.

"Okay then. So why are you leaving? It's only 8:30."

"Oh, I'm really not into dances. I'm not very good at dancing."

"Ericka we play your school, I've seen you dance during halftime… you aren't good… you're amazing!" She blushed and giggled.

"Why thank you. I'm very flattered."

"No prob. So if you aren't going back inside, where are you going?"

"Home I guess."

"Well no girl as pretty as you should have to go home on a Saturday night at," he looked at his watch "8:33. So I won't allow it."

"You won't huh? So where do you think I should go?"

"You're coming with me. Come on… my car's just down the street a bit." He started walking down the sidewalk, and Ericka followed closely behind.

"Where are we going though?"

"You'll see."

"Bradin wait, aren't you afraid that someone will see us?"

"All of our friends are inside that school, trust me we're safe. Besides, for you, getting caught is a chance I'm willing to take."

"Ok… and awe! Thank you."

"Again, no prob."

They walked a bit longer and then reached his black Audi… he walked in front of Ericka, unlocked the car, then pulled her door open and held it for her.

"Thank you… nice car by the way."

"Oh thanks… my grand-dad and Maw-maw got it for me for my birthday." She giggled at the cute names he had for his grandparents.

"Well that's really cool. They must really like you huh? Haha."

"Just a little… haha."

He got in on his side and buckled his seat belt then started the car. Pulling out of the parking space he finally spoke again.

"So do you have a curfew?"

"Yes… it's 12 so we have quite a while."

"Good."

"Braaadinnn? Where are weee goooing?" she whined.

"Errrrickaaa! I'm not goooing to tellll you… you'll find out in like 15 minutes anyways."

"Okay…" she let out a loud sigh, folding her arms over her chest pouting. Bradin just chuckled at her childish actions and kept driving… when they reached their destination he was the first to break the silence.

"Here we are. Happy now?"

"That depends… where is here?"

"Get out and see."

"Okay…" She got out finding herself at central park. She loved that place even though she hadn't been there in ages. She wondered Bradin had asked her to come and why he had brought her there but she kept her questions to herself, assuming that she'd find out anyway. Bradin got out of the car too and went to her side, standing beside her, patiently waiting for her response. She didn't respond for some time but just stood there taking everything of the park in during the night time… it was beautiful. The lights, the quietness, the smell of the summer night, and the cool breeze that cooled the world after the hotness of the day had passed, it was almost magical. "Wow… this is amazing," she finally brought out quietly in almost a whisper. Bradin smiled, happy with her reaction to his favorite place in the world.

"Yeah… it's awesome here at night. Well come on." And with that he pressed forward deeper into the park. Ericka followed at his side not speaking, but just following in amazement and comfortable silence. They kept going for a while, and then they finally came to the heart of central park, the fountain. It was truly a magnificent sight, all lit up in the dark of the night. Bradin suddenly took Ericka's hand and intertwined their fingers.

Looking her straight in the eye he with all honesty said, "Ericka, I really, REALLY like you." She smiled sweetly.

"Bradin, I like you too."

"I'm so happy you said that… and that's why…"

**OH NO!! What's gonna happen?? What is he going to say? Haha kinda cliffy I know… please R&R thanks for reading! ******


	4. Colds

**A/N: Thanks SOOOO much directly to all you reviewers and readers… I know I don't have many reviews but just the few per chapter is making such an impact… so please keep on reviewing, and this one's dedicated to you guys! Much Love, Aimee.**

"… And that's why… I want to ask you a very important question," Bradin continued slowly and cautiously.

Ericka eyed him suspiciously. "Okay then, shoot."

"Well, I know we've only known each other for a whole two, maybe two and a half, hours and I want to know you better. So would you do me the great honor of being my dinner date next Saturday night?"

"Bradin, I'd honestly love to... What about the difference in schools though? If anyone finds out then we're so dead!"

"I don't care. And I don't think you do either. If you do I understand I wouldn't want you to have a bad rep because of me unless you're willing to have one. I don't want to force anything on you honestly. But just so you know, I wouldn't care if the whole world was screaming for me to leave you alone. The only person I would listen to would be you, the ball is in your court here…"

She didn't need words to respond to that. She didn't have any either, so she just threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her petite figure. "I'm taking that as a yes?"

She smiled and whispered in his ear, "Yes, yes, a million times yes."

"Good that's exactly what I wanted to hear." She smiled even bigger if that was even possible.

"So… What do you wanna do now?"

"I don't know… maybe just walk for a bit longer. Then I'll take you home?"

"Sounds wonderful." They started walking again and silence settled over them and as they walked Bradin slipped his hand into Ericka's and intertwined their fingers. Ericka looked down at their hands smiling, admiring the fact that hers fit so well into his. She looked up and found herself staring into his bright green eyes for the second time that night. And also for the second time in that fatal night, they found themselves leaning in without even thinking. Their lips met in yet another perfect kiss, only this time no one had to fall, and no one was staring. They were all alone and happy about it. He ran his tongue along her bottom lip asking for entrance, she was reluctant because she hardly knew him, but gave in thinking; what can it hurt? They stood there under the street light holding hands, and kissing for some time, when suddenly the sky let loose and allowed the rain to fall over them. When the down pour came on it was Ericka who pulled back from the kiss.

"Oh shit!" Bradin laughed at their predicament and at the fact that Ericka had cursed… she just didn't look like the type that would to him. "Oh you think this is funny Mr. Westerly?"

"Kinda… wait how do you know my last name?"

"You're the star quarterback… I think I'd know…"

"Oh haha yeah I guess I forgot… shit, we're getting soaked!"

"Haha yeah we are. Let's go." She grabbed his hand and ran in the direction from which they had come in hopes of making it to the car before the rain got any heavier.

As they ran Bradin began to think about the entire night. "What's yours?"

Ericka looked at him, confused, "What's my what?"

"Last name… you know mine, so what is yours?"

"Oh, it's Marley."

"Ericka Marley. It's nice."

"Why thank you Bradin Westerly."

The next morning Ericka awoke feeling terrible. Her head hurt, her nose was stuffy, her eyes were watering, and her throat burned like crazy. Great she thought to herself… one week until she had to go to school and she was sick, this year was going to be just lovely already. Despite how terribly she felt, she had to smile when she picked up her phone and read the screen which read: one new message from Bradin. She opened it and read.

_Hey. Omg last night was soo fun… but I feel horrible right now! Hope you didn't catch it 2! Haha._

_~Bradin_

She smiled and sent her reply.

Bradin nervously smiled when his phone rang and he saw it was her reply. But he excitedly opened the message and read it.

_Haha... no such luck, I have it too. My whole self hurts haha. But last night was worth it ;-) ~ Ericka3_

He smiled and said aloud to no one in particular, "Ah she's flirting!"

He smiled and replied to her.

_Do you have an AIM account? I don't feel like texting._

Within seconds she replied again.

_Yeah! Haha my screen name is CheeringxXxRocks._

He replied

_Sweet, mine is Footballer123. I'll be on in like 5 mins._

Within 10 seconds Ericka sprang from her bed and ran to her downstairs computer. Luckily her parents were out of town so she wouldn't catch hell from them because she was talking to a boy that she barely knew. Not that she would've told them about him anyway, but they'd have pried the information out of her and she'd have been caught for sure. She signed into her account as soon as the computer was on and warmed up, and she already had a friend request from none other than Footballer123!

"YAYY!!" she squealed to herself causing her throat to throb. "Okay note to self… yelling is a bad thing for Ericka right now." She clicked add, and started a conversation with him.

_CheeringxXxRocks- Hey! Haha what are you doing?_

_Footballer123- Oh not too much. Talking to you. HBU?_

_CheeringxXxRocks- Same haha._

_Footballer123- You're talking to yourself?_

_CheeringxXxRocks- Haha you know what I mean silly._

_Footballer123- Yeah, but you are so fun to pick on._

_CheeringxXxRocks- I'm sticking my tongue out at you!_

_Footballer123- I just did the same to you! Take that!_

_CheeringxXxRocks- Haha nice… OMG I feel sooo bad!_

_Footballer123- I'm sorry. I do too… what is wrong with you?_

_CheeringxXxRocks- My head and throat hurt and I'm all congested._

_Footballer123- Same here. It sucks soo bad!_

_CheeringxXxRocks- Haha so who so you think had it first?_

_Footballer123- I'll take the fall for it… I didn't feel the best yesterday so it was probz me._

_CheeringxXxRocks- Oh haha… well kissing you was worth getting sick so it's okay._

_Footballer123- Thanks… I think._

_CheeringxXxRocks123- haha it WAS a compliment and no problem._

_Footballer123- Haha… you're worth it too… but I had better not get sick every time I kiss you!_

_CheeringxXxRocks- Who says we'll ever kiss again? ;-)_

_Footballer123- well… uh… I do! Haha_

_CheeringxXxRocks- haha I was totes pulling your leg there! Haha_

_Footballer123- oh haha… nice! But ohmeway, I was thinking I could pick you up at 7ish Saturday?_

_CheeringxXxRocks- sounds awesome! Haha. So is this like an official date?_

_Footballer123- Yup. Haha_

_CheeringxXxRocks- SWEET! Haha, so I should dress up a bit?_

_Footballer123- Yes. I am going to._

_CheeringxXxRocks- AHH! Haha this rocks SO hard!_

_Footballer123- haha yeah. Well I g2g to practice now… I hope you feel better. I'll text ya in a bit._

_CheeringxXxRocks- Okay… you too. And I'll ttyl then! Byes._

_Footballer123- Later._

Ericka jumped from the computer chair and did a spin in the middle of the room, a sort of victory dance in a way. There was just something about him that made her heart sing and made her skin tingle. It was amazing, and she loved it. She had even momentarily forgotten that she was sick. That didn't last long however, for within a minute she was snapped back into reality when a bout of coughs came over her.

"Being sick sucks!!" Her chest heaved as she tried to regain her breath. Once she did, she went back up the stairs and into her room. Then she went into her bathroom, where she took a decongestant and some cough medicine. After that she got back into her bed and fell asleep with a smile on her face.

About two hours later, Bradin stepped in through the door of his house feeling ever sicker that he had that morning. He was sweaty and was in dire need of a shower. So he went to into his room picking out some sweats and a football t-shirt, went into the bathroom, turned on the shower, and got in. he let the hot steam clear his sinuses and relax his muscles. Once he was out of the shower and dressed he too was feeling rather sleepy, so he layed down on the couch letting his mind wander. He thought of Ericka, and about what happened between them the previous night, and couldn't help but smile. Lost in his thoughts, he let sleep overtake him as well.


	5. First date

**A/N: Omg I'm soo sorry for never updating. I got a bit of criticism from a friend who didn't review to the story itself, but directly to me… and it kinda threw me off for a while. But here it is… I hope you guys like it. R&R**

The next week went by in a blur for both Bradin and Ericka. Between back-to-school shopping, sports conditioning, and texting each other neither one had much time to do anything else. Although they were busy, time couldn't have seemed any slower as they both awaited the arrival of Saturday night. Once Friday rolled around, it was the only thing that either of them could think about.

At football practice, Bradin called wrong plays and got sacked countless times due to his shortened attention span. Ericka messed all of her chants up at cheer practice and caused the whole team to run ten suicides each. The day turned out to be bittersweet for both. Bitter because of the countless mess-ups they both had to endure. Sweet because it drew them to the day they finally got to go on a date.

At six p.m. Ericka was relaxing on her bed, reading Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen, when she received a text. She lazily put her book down and rolled over so she could grab her phone. Without looking to see who it was from she flipped her phone open to find

_I miss you. Xx Bradin_

She smiled and typed her reply.

When his answered message came through Bradin was lying on his couch flipping through some channels to see if the Mets were playing that night. His phone started playing Check Yes Juliet, her ringtone. He smiled and read her reply.

_I miss you more! Haha I can't wait till tomorrow. So where are we going?_

When he finally replied, Ericka frowned as she read the message.

_NOSY! Haha you'll know tomorrow! I won't tell you until then._

She smiled through her aggravation and said fine. She loved surprises, so she decided to let him keep her wondering. She was sure it'd be worth it.

The next day came quickly to both of their surprises. At 8 am Ericka rolled out of bed and threw some shorts on along with a t-shirt and got ready for her 9 o'clock practice. It was only an hour long so she knew it should be pretty painless. After she was ready and finished off a bowl of special K she had about ten extra minutes so she headed back upstairs to look for a dress to wear on her date. All of her dresses were either too dressy or not enough, so she was out of options. She gave up on her own wardrobe and decided she'd just have to go to the mall after practice. That was cool with her anyway; it'd defiantly kill some time. She'd ask Cricket to go with her, but she'd have to keep the reason a secret. With this she got in her car and drove to the school.

Ericka arrived at 8:55, and found most of the girls stretching on the practice football field, since the football players were on the real one. Halfway through practice they broke into pairs to go over the new dance, so she and cricket paired off (cricket was co captain).

"So," Ericka began, "I need to go get a new dress after practice. Do you wanna come with?"

"Sure, what's the dress for?"

"This dinner my dad has tonight. Mom's away on business so he's taking me."

"Oh, that's nice. We'll go to Hollister; they have tons of cute dresses right now!"

"Cool. Sounds great." And just that fast she lied to her best friend, and felt absolutely terrible. She vowed that she'd eventually break the news as soon as she knew it was the right time… it just wouldn't be today.

At 10 am, Bradin called a 5 minute rest from practice to signify it was half over. He went to the bleachers, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and downed half a water bottle. Derek jogged over to join him.

"Hey man, your plays this year are killer. We're so gonna trash northern at our opener!" Immediately Bradin's thoughts flew to Ericka. He didn't even want to think about playing her team.

"Yeah man thanks." But just like that Derek's attention was elsewhere. He was checking out the cheerleaders on the next field who were practicing their builds. He'd had his eye on Southerns flyer, Joanna, for quite some time.

"Dude, just look at them!!! We have got to get cheerleaders to go to homecoming with us this year."

"We always do. But, I'm done dating cheerleaders. I think I'm going to try something a bit newer this year."

"What the hell? OHH I know. You're still thinking of that northern chick aren't you? That Ericka… you have got to get over that man. It was one kiss."

Bradin wanted to scream. He'd have really liked to just announce to everyone that he liked her, and he didn't give a shit what anyone else said, but she convinced him that the best thing for now was to wait until football season was over to tell anyone. He'd reluctantly agreed, so he wasn't going to tell Derek that he was in fact thinking of her.

"Yeah I know it was. And I am over it. It's just that dating any of the cheerleaders is going to be weird with Sara being around all the time, so I'm going in a different direction." Derek wasn't buying, but he wasn't going to argue.

"Whatever man." And with that he walked away, and practice was called back into order.

At 10:30 a.m. the girls arrived at the mall. They headed straight for Forever 21, simply because they knew for a fact that they could find a perfect dress for Ericka there. They browsed for a while then picked out three for her to try on. The first was a light blue one with narrow straps that came to her knee. It looked good but she didn't think that it was very attention grabbing. The second one was a red and white floral one that was mid thigh length. It initially caught her eye because it was Southern highs colors, and she wanted to show off that she didn't care about the difference of schools which Bradin seemed to think she was too worried about. However it didn't quite work either; it was a bit loose at the top and didn't flatter her nice body.

Then they hit a bought of good luck. The third was absolutely perfect. It was a short white dress with pink and orange floral prints on it. It hugged her body perfectly, and she knew it was probably the most perfect dress she'd find no matter how hard she tried. She had a pair of white strappy pumps at home from American eagle that would match well, so her outfit was set. When she came out of the dressing room she twirled around so Cricket could see the dress. "This is the one! It's perfect," she declared.

"Awe! Ericka, you look gorgeous!"

"Thanks! Oh my god! Bra…" she tried to cut herself off but Cricket's gaze was cutting through her like a knife. She sighed. "Brady Mitchell, the captain of the soccer team will love it," she lied.

"Do you like him?"

"Well kinda…" Really she didn't. He was cute, yes. But she knew she'd never have true feelings for him.

"Ericka! What about Shane? You know he's been crushing on you. And he's a football player. It's perfect!"

"I'm not into dating football players. They all have the IQ's of grapefruits and I enjoy having conversations about things other than the hatred our school has for freaking Southern High School!" Cricket looked a bit hurt and Ericka knew she'd gone a little overboard. "Look, I'm sorry for snapping like that. I'm just stressed about this year. I don't need to think about guys right now. Forget I even mentioned Brady. I'm sorry."

And just like that Cricket thought Ericka was back to square one. Little did she know that her best friend was just stressed for her first date with a guy she could really like, even if she wasn't supposed to. She really wanted Bradin. She had no clue as to why though.

The girls left the mall at 1:00 after grabbing a quick bite to eat and hitting up a few more stores. Ericka dropped Cricket off at the school so she could get her car, then she headed home. She had no idea what she was going to do with herself until 5:30 when she'd start getting ready. When she pulled into her driveway and got out of her car she finally reached into her back pocket and turned her phone back on. She didn't want Cricket to ask who was texting her if and when Bradin did, so she just didn't bother to turn it on after practice. She had five new messages. Three were just those damn forwards that she never even bothered to read and the last two were from Bradin.

The first one read: _Hey darling. How was practice?_

The second was: _Umm… hello?_

She laughed to herself as she opened her front door and went inside. After throwing her purse and cheer bag onto the floor and kicking her tennis shoes off she flopped down on her couch and replied.

Bradin was relieved when his text ringtone went off and he read his message from Ericka. He'd been a little worried about why she wasn't answering him. He knew he was paranoid, but with the way she acted about not telling anyone, he had to wonder if she would back out soon. And he didn't want her to at all.

The reply said: _Hey stud. I was just out shopping sorry about that. Practice was alright… So got any big plans for this evening? ;-)_

He replied: _Oh just going out with some hott chick. She's a sweet girl._

_Oh? What a coincidence I have a date myself! Where are you taking this girl?_

_Ah! You think you're sneaky don't you? Well I'm not giving in. We're going to dinner. That's all you get._

_:-p_

_Haha thanks. But you'll like it. I promise._

_I hope so. Well I'm going to go take a little nap and read the rest of my summer reading assignment. I'll see you at 7 correct?_

_Yep. Have fun reading. And sweet dreams. Xoxo._

_Ha thanks. Xoxo._

Bradin went outside and mowed the little yard they had at their suburban home. Then he hand washed his Audi. After that he watched TV for a while. At 5:30 he couldn't take it anymore. He had to get ready. He knew it would only take him about 45 minutes to get completely ready but he didn't care. He was already so nervous he couldn't stand to think about it. He never got nervous over girls, but he couldn't shake this feeling.

Ericka started getting ready at precisely the same time Bradin did. She had tossed and turned in bed for at least an hour, and had long finished her book. Then ended up watching part of a The Secret Life of the American Teenager marathon until it was time to get ready. That's what she hated most about dates, she never did anything the days of, because she was too giddy. But she knew that this date would be worth it.

At 6:45 Bradin had been ready for fifteen minutes and had started to write his speech for the pep rally the first day of school. After glancing at the clock one more time he figured now was a good time to leave. It'd take him about fifteen minutes to get there which would make his timing right on.

Ericka had just finished her hair and got her shoes out of the closet. She smoothed her hands over her dress examining herself in the full length mirror in her foyer. She glanced at the clock reluctantly, knowing it hadn't been that long since the last time she looked. It read 6:55. She let out a long sigh, relived that her wait was almost over, and soon she'd be getting this show on the road. She redirected her attention to the mirror and looked over her reflection once more. She was happy with her appearance. So she put her shoes on and sat on her couch. As she concentrated on breathing, she heard each second passing at the hand moved slowly on the clock.

Bradin pulled into the driveway right at 6:58. "Ah with two minutes to spare," he said to himself. They both lived relatively close to the cutoff line that divided the schools' students so their houses were not too far from each other. Had he lived, literally, five miles down the road, he'd go to Northern. He got out of his car and took his time walking to the door. When he reached the porch he rang the doorbell and waited for her.

At the sound of the bell Ericka nearly jumped out of her skin. But not wanting to seem eager she took her time in stopping by the mirror once more and smoothing her hair, which she was wearing straight. Then grabbed her clutch and answered the door.

"Hey, you," Bradin said quickly as she stepped outside. "Wow you look great!" he looked her up and down.

"Thanks. You too." She replied looking at him. He had on an Orange dress shirt from Hollister with the sleeves rolled up a little and a pair of dressy jeans. "And look, we kinda match!" She indicated looking at the color of his shirt.

"Yeah, we do," he chuckled. "Well let's get going." He extended his arm which she linked hers through, and they walked to his car.

Most of the ride was only filled with the sounds of the radio. Occasionally one or the other would sing a few bars from a song. Other than that the silence was comfortable.

They arrived at their destination half an hour later; it was a little Italian restaurant just outside the city called Antony's. Turns out it's her favorite place to eat as well as his. They went in and ordered, him a plate of spaghetti, and her a grilled chicken gorgonzola salad. As they ate they talked about anything and everything. They were splitting a dessert while in the middle of the questions game.

"Favorite color?" she asked.

"Blue. Because that's the color your eyes are…"

"Awe, thank you. Your turn," she added taking a bite of cheesecake.

"If you could be anywhere, where would you be?" she paused a minute to think about it then smiled before replying.

"Here"

The game went on as he picked up the bill and they drove into the city and parked along the road. They ended up back in central park a little later. When they reached the exact place they'd been where they had shared their second kiss and then he stoped walking and stood right in front of Ericka.

"Do you remember this place?"

"Bradin, it's only been a week. Of course I do."

"Okay… tell me what happened here a week ago."

"I was asked on a date by a wonderful guy, who happens to be standing in front of me as I speak."

"Do you like him?"

"Yes… very much so." And that was the first she'd said it out loud. She really, really liked him.

"Okay then. Here goes nothing. Ericka, I can't get you out of my head. I think about you all the time. You are beautiful inside and out. I really like you too. Look, I know it's a little soon and we've only been talking for about a week, but I've never felt like this quite this fast. I mean, the moment I kissed you, I knew you were something special. I know I'm not the best at these things, and I am trying my best here," he began taking his nice, puma watch off his wrist and sliding it around hers, redoing the clasp, "but would you do me the honor of being my girlfriend?"

**Dun, dun, dunnnn! Haha. What will she say?? What should she say?? Haha let me know what you think. And thank you sooo much for being patient through my writers block. I'd greatly appreciate reviews!**


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